About STAR
The Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR)
Program included four components:
- California Standards Tests (CST)
- California Alternate Performance Assessment
(CAPA)
- California Achievement Tests, Sixth Edition
Survey (CAT/6 Survey) - grades 3 and 7 only
- Spanish Assessment of Basic Education, Second
Edition (SABE/2)
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California Standards Tests (CSTs)
The California Standards Tests in
English-language arts, mathematics, science, and history-social
science are administered only to students in California
public schools. Except for a writing component that is
administered as part of the grade four and seven English-language
arts tests, all questions are multiple choice. These tests
were developed specifically to assess students' knowledge
of the California academic content standards. The State
Board of Education adopted these standards that specify
what all California children are expected to know and
be able to do in each grade or course. The 2005 CSTs were
required for students who were enrolled in the following
grades/courses at the time of testing or who had completed
a course during the 2004-05 school year, including 2004
summer school.
| All
Students in Grades 2 - 11 |
English-Language Arts |
| All Students in
Grades 2 - 9 |
Mathematics |
| All Students in
Grade 5 |
Science |
| Grade 8 - 11 students
who completed |
Algebra I, Geometry, Algebra II, or Integrated
Mathematics 1, 2, or 3 |
| Grade 8 and 9 students
who did not complete one of the above math courses
during the school year |
General Mathematics |
| Grade 9 and 10 students
who completed Algebra II or Integrated Mathematics
3 during the previous grade and grade 11 students
who completed Algebra II or Integrated Mathematics
3 anytime before 2005 testing began, including students
taking higher mathematics courses or no mathematics
course |
Summative High School Mathematics |
| All Students in
Grades 8, 10, and 11 |
History-Social Science |
| Grade 9 - 11 students
who completed |
Earth Science, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, or
Integrated/Coordinated Science Courses |
English-Language Arts
The grade two and three California English-Language Arts
Standards Tests each have 65 multiple-choice questions.
The tests for grades five, six, and eight through eleven
each have 75 multiple-choice questions. During 2005, the
grade four and seven California English-Language Arts
Standards Tests included 75 multiple-choice questions
plus a writing sample. For the writing component, students
were required to write a narrative for an assigned topic.
The types of writing used for the writing component of
the test change from year to year and are based on the
California Writing Application Content Standards. Grade
four students may be required to write a narrative, a
summary of information, or a response to literature. Grade
seven students may be required to write a fictional or
autobiographical narrative, a response to literature,
a persuasive essay, or a summary of information. Two readers
independently score each student抯 paper using a four-point
scoring guide. The two readers' scores are added to the
75 multiple-choice questions, resulting in a maximum score
of 83 points possible for the English-language arts test
at these two grades.
Mathematics
The California Mathematics Standards Tests are grade specific
for grades two through seven. Each of these tests has
65 multiple-choice questions. The California Mathematics
Standards Tests for grades eight through eleven also have
65 multiple-choice questions.
- All students in grades eight and nine who
had not yet completed or were not enrolled in
discipline specific, standards-based math courses
or who were enrolled in the first year of a
multi-year Algebra I course were required to
take the General Mathematics CST. This test
assesses the California Mathematics Standards
for grades six and seven.
- Students in grades eight through eleven who
had completed or were enrolled in discipline
specific, standards-based math courses took
California Mathematics Standards Tests in Algebra
I, Geometry, Algebra II, or Integrated Mathematics
1, 2, or 3.
- Students in grades nine and ten who had completed
Algebra II or Integrated Mathematics 3 during
a previous school year and grade eleven students
who completed one of these two courses anytime
prior to the beginning of testing were required
to take the Summative High School Mathematics
CST. This included students who were taking
higher mathematics courses or no mathematics
course.
|
History-Social Science
Students in grades eight, ten, and eleven took California
History-Social Science Standards Tests. The grade eight
test had 75 multiple-choice questions, and the grade ten
and eleven tests each had 60 multiple-choice questions.
These tests assess:
- Grade 8-a cumulative test of the grade 6
(World History and Geography: Ancient Civilizations)
and grade 7 (World History and Geography: Medieval
and Early Modern Times) standards, as well as
grade 8 United States History and Geography:
Growth and Conflict
- Grade 10-World History, Culture, and Geography:
The Modern World
- Grade 11-United States History and Geography:
Continuity and Change in the Twentieth Century
|
Science
The Grade Five California Science Standards Test was administered
to all students enrolled in fifth grade. This test assesses
students? knowledge of the California Grade Four and Five
Science Content Standards.
The science tests for grades nine through eleven were
based on course-specific standards. Only grade nine through
eleven students who were enrolled in or completed a standards-based
science course took a test. Tests were administered for
the following standards-based courses:
- Earth Science
- Biology/Life Science
- Chemistry
- Physics
- Integrated/Coordinated Science 1, 2, 3 and
4 (four test forms, each assessing specific
standards for biology/life science, chemistry,
earth science, and physics)
|
CST scores are reported as one of five performance levels
from advanced to far below basic. The scores are used
for calculating each school抯 Academic Performance Index
(API). Only the results of the California English-Language
Arts and Mathematics Standards Tests are used to determine
the progress elementary and middle schools are making
toward meeting the federal No Child Left Behind adequate
yearly progress requirement of having all students score
at proficient or above on these tests.
Information about the test score weights that are used
for the Academic Performance Index calculations are available
in the 2004-05 Base API - Information Guide posted at
http://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/ac/ap/index.asp.
For further information about the CST scores, go to Term
and Score Explanations.
California Alternate Performance Assessment (CAPA)
Students with significant cognitive disabilities who are
unable to take the CSTs and CAT/6 Survey participate in
the STAR Program by taking the CAPA. Alternate assessments
are required by two federal laws, the Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and the No Child Left
Behind (NCLB) Act. The CAPA is an individually administered
performance assessment with all tasks linked to the California
English-Language Arts and Mathematics Content Standards.
Special educators in California identified subsets of
standards on which it is appropriate to assess students
with moderate to severe disabilities.
The CAPA is organized into five levels, representing
specific grade spans. Most students eligible for the
CAPA take the level corresponding to their grade placement.
These students are expected to move through the CAPA
levels as they progress in age. Some students with complex,
profound disabilities are eligible for Level I. These
students remain in Level I and are not expected to move
through the other CAPA levels.
|
Level I
|
Students in grades 2-11 (those with the most complex,
profound disabilities) |
|
Level II
|
Students in grades 2 and 3 |
|
Level III
|
Students in grades 4 and 5 |
|
Level IV
|
Students in grades 6 and 8 |
|
Level V
|
Students in grades 9 and 11 |
CAPA scores are reported as one of five performance
levels from advanced to far below basic. While the CAPA
performance levels have the same labels as those used
for the CSTs, they are defined differently and are based
on a different scale score range.
California Achievement Tests, Sixth Edition (CAT/6
Survey)
The governor signed legislation reauthorizing the STAR
Program during August 2008. Prior to the reauthorization
that is effective beginning with the spring 2005 test
administration, the California Achievement Tests, Sixth
Edition Survey (CAT/6 Survey) were administered to all
students in grades two through eleven. The reauthorization
program requires administering the CAT/6 Survey only to
students in grades 3 and 7. Students in grades three and
seven were tested in reading, language, spelling, and
mathematics. The purpose of administering the CAT/6 Survey
is to determine how well California students are achieving
academically compared to a national sample of students
tested in the same grade at the same time of the school
year.
Spanish Assessment of Basic Education, Second Edition
(SABE/2)
The SABE/2, published by CTB/McGraw-Hill, is a norm-referenced
achievement test in Spanish. The test battery includes
tests of Spanish reading, language, and spelling, as well
as mathematics tests in Spanish. Spanish-speaking English
learners (limited-English proficient students) who had
been enrolled in California public schools less than 12
months when testing began were required to take the SABE/2
in addition to taking the CSTs and CAT/6 Survey. Districts
had the option of administering the SABE/2 to Spanish-speaking
English learners who had been in California public schools
12 months or more.
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